Hindi ( Urvashi, PVR Cinemas)

Cast: Randeep Hooda, Chunky Pandey, Sushant Singh, Yashpal Sharma, Isha Kopikkar, Rukhsar

Director: Vishram Sawant

Everytime something is billed to roll out of the assembly line of Ram Gopal Varma's 'Factory', hype and expectations soar. And a film on the underworld from the makers of Satya and Company, should be promising.

Vishram Sawant keeps the promise and delivers a cent per cent knockout product, that will rank among the best films of the year thus far. Sawant works on the basic premise, “Danthe mein dost dushman hota hai” to weave D, the tale of Dubai-returned mechanic Deshu. Unsure about his next move, Deshu whiles away his time in a Mumbai chawl. Then, he witnesses a brutal murder and life will never be the same for him.

Threatened into silence by gang leader Maangli and beaten up by police for failing to identify the culprits and abetting them, he decides to be part of a gang himself.

Deshu meets Maangli’s rival, Haashim Bhai (Goga Kapoor). He promises the gangleader to get rid of Maangli in return for a place in the gang. Along with comrade Raghav (Pandey) he soon becomes Hasshim’s most trusted man, much to the dislike of the leader’s sons Mukaram (Sushant Singh) and Shabbir (Yashpal Sharma).

Tension between the two sons and Deshu heightens with each incident. Then the duo decide to get into the act and regain total control of the gang by getting rid of the stumbling blocks. Raghav is bumped off and Deshu is next. What happens then?

In its two-hour runtime, D never once runs out of steam.The film has its share of cold-blooded violence, blood and gore, yet weaves in a story as well. Sawant does not attempt anything outrageous in his maiden attempt. Even so, the end product is stylish with amazing cinematography, great performances and excellent use of the background score during conversations.

But all said and done, D rests heavily on protagonist Deshu, brilliantly portrayed by Randeep Hooda. Looking svelte with his aviator-style sunglasses, the actor performs the part with great elan. Though the drawl in his voice seems characteristic of Malik (Devgan) in Company, D wouldn’t have been as good a movie as it is without Hooda.

As for the suporting cast, Chunky Pandey makes a great comeback into mainstream Bollywood cinema.The ladies Isha Kopikkar and Rukhsaar have limited screentime and nothing much to do in this male infested bastion, yet make their presence felt.

The film has its flaws with the only song sequence and police encounter specialists being portrayed as hitmen for gangsters.

Even then, Sawant cannot be discredited for his brilliant effort. D is just good cinema that does not preach and gives the viewer money’s worth. In short, this is one helluva must-watch.